On Tuesday, April 18, the Washington State Senate passed Resolution #8648, recognizing the historic significance of ‘The Maury Island Incident,’ an historic UFO sighting which took place 70 years ago on June 21, 1947.

The Resolution was sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, who represents the 33rd District, where several scenes in the locally-produced independent film were shot.

In addition to commemorating one of the first UFO sightings (and “Man In Black” encounters) of the modern era, the Resolution also acknowledged the first two fatalities of the then newly independent U.S. Air Force – Intelligence Officers Capt. William L. Davidson and 1st Lt. Frank M. Brown, who were tragically killed when their B-25 mysteriously crashed near Kelso, WA. The airplane was allegedly carrying evidence from their investigation into the incident.

“I was happy to sponsor a Senate Resolution this week acknowledging the 70th Anniversary of the mysterious sighting of flying saucers over Maury Island,” Keiser said in a statement. “As you may know, Burien has celebrated the ‘Season of the Saucers’ with an annual UFO festival for the past few years. I was very pleased that the director, executive producer, and screenwriter of the short, award-winning film ‘The Maury Island Incident’ were able to join me in Olympia for the presentation and passage of the resolution. A little levity on the Senate floor was welcome this week.”

Here’s video of the resolution, which includes acknowledgment of some core members of the film’s producing team who were present:

WHEREAS, On June 21, 1947, Tacoma resident Harold Dahl and his son allegedly sighted six flying discs over Puget Sound near Vashon- Maury Island, an event now commonly known as “The Maury Island Incident”; and

WHEREAS, On June 22, 1947, Mr. Dahl alleges he was warned not to talk about what he saw by a man dressed in a black suit; and

WHEREAS, These controversial sightings helped launch a pop culture phenomenon of UFO sightings across the United States during the summer of 1947, which became known as “The Summer of the Saucers”; and

WHEREAS, On August 8, 1947, two weeks after the Washington sightings, a UFO is alleged to have crashed outside Roswell, New Mexico, and this alleged crash has since become the most well-known alleged UFO incident in history; and

WHEREAS, On August 1, 1947, Army Air Corp Intelligence Officers Capt. William L. Davidson and 1st Lt. Frank M. Brown, who interviewed Harold Dahl about his sighting, lost their lives when the B-25 Bomber they were piloting crashed outside of Kelso, Washington; and

WHEREAS, Following the tragic deaths of Davidson and Brown, Harold Dahl publicly claimed his sighting at Maury Island was a hoax; and

WHEREAS, Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted an investigation of the deaths of Davidson and Brown and ultimately concluded that Dahl did not recant his story but that his claim of hoax was itself a fabrication to avoid further public attention and ridicule; and

WHEREAS, The FBI’s conclusions and Dahl’s secret were sealed for fifty years; and

WHEREAS, The Maury Island Incident and its surrounding circumstances have made immeasurable contributions to Washington State’s cultural heritage and to popular culture worldwide, including most recently the 2014 award-winning motion picture “The Maury Island Incident,” and the 2015 web series “The Maury Island Incident,” produced in conjunction with the Washington FilmWorks Innovation Lab and Motion Picture Competitiveness Program; and

WHEREAS, On April 1, 2017, the 3rd Annual Burien UFO Festival will be held in the newest hipster hangout of downtown Olde Burien with wide community participation and good humor; and

WHEREAS, On the seventieth anniversary of the seminal UFO sightings events, the Washington State sightings should be recognized for both their prominence and primacy in the modern era of UFO popular culture;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate pause to acknowledge the seventieth anniversary of the June 21, 1947, Maury Island Incident; the 1947 “Summer of the Saucers” popular culture phenomenon launched worldwide by these controversial events; and the first reference to the characters now popularly known as “men in black”; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate recognize and honor the heroism and service of Army Air Corp Intelligence Officers Capt. William L. Davidson and 1st Lt. Frank M. Brown, who lost their lives following their investigation of the Maury Island Incident when their airplane crashed outside of Kelso, Washington, on August 1, 1947; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Air Force Historical Research Agency, to the Vashon-Maury Island Heritage Association, to the Des Moines Historical Society, to the Highline Historical Society, to the Burien Historical Society, to the Longview-Kelso Historical Society, and to the Washington State Historical Museum.